Cornishpoms Posted April 19, 2013 Report Share Posted April 19, 2013 Ok... staring to look at area to settle north of the river. Which suburbs are the ones to avoid and which have the best high schools? We have a budget of $650 wk. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kerry267 Posted April 19, 2013 Report Share Posted April 19, 2013 We're also looking NOR and I'm only going on research I've done online but we've narrowed it down to Duncraig, followed by woodvale and ocean reef. Duncraig school seems to be good. We too have a 13 year old so hope to get into school as soon as possible after we arrive in July. Where in Cornwall are you? My husband is Cornish Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cornishpoms Posted April 19, 2013 Author Report Share Posted April 19, 2013 We're in Callington, about 20mins from plymouth. also love the look of these areas, just the rent is so high!! Hoping to be over between oct-dec. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest chrisandnicole Posted April 19, 2013 Report Share Posted April 19, 2013 hi more cornish ere, also looking at duncraig, sorrento, woodvale. we should be out by the end of may........ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kerry267 Posted April 19, 2013 Report Share Posted April 19, 2013 Have to have a Cornish meet up Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mad Cow Posted April 19, 2013 Report Share Posted April 19, 2013 Woodvale or Duncraig are good areas! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kerry267 Posted April 19, 2013 Report Share Posted April 19, 2013 We're in Callington, about 20mins from plymouth.also love the look of these areas, just the rent is so high!! Hoping to be over between oct-dec. He's from Bude. I can let you know our findings? We too are looking at $600-650.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StraighttothePoint Posted April 20, 2013 Report Share Posted April 20, 2013 (edited) Ok...staring to look at area to settle north of the river. Which suburbs are the ones to avoid and which have the best high schools? We have a budget of $650 wk. A good starting point would be review the high school results for NOR and then if you like the look of the school research the suburb and see if it is in your budget. Any suburb really from or near, Kinross (Currambine) down to probably Stirling fits in terms of your budget although some of them, e.g. Connelly a hidden gem I always thought, and which is excellent, may just be too much for you. Any further from the city north of Kinross you will be able to afford but state high schools are few and far between. Alternatively if you want to do it the other way you can review the suburbs, short list those and then check the high schools out. However that all being said and done it is also down to where you need to be for work unless one of you is a FIFO? If I was doing this now, after all these years of being here, then Connelly, Joondalup and Duncraig would be three picks. I never like to say which suburbs are less appealing because it may offend some people reading, and/or who contribute to this site. As in both cases, good and bad, we all have our own views and my preferred picks or avoids would not be somebody elses for example. Education and School Lists http://www.det.wa.edu.au/ http://bettereducation.com.au/results/WA/all.aspx http://www.scsa.wa.edu.au/internet/Publications/Reports/Statistical_Reports/School_Comparison_Statistics What Suburb http://www.viacorp.com/perth-suburbs-compared.html Edited April 20, 2013 by StraighttothePoint Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cornishpoms Posted April 20, 2013 Author Report Share Posted April 20, 2013 Cornish meet up sounds like a plan:0) thanks for all the info. Sounds like I'm looking in the right areas! Would I be right in thinking that catchment high school for mindarie would be clarkson? And am I also right in thinking it doesn't have a great reputation?! My dad lived in mindarie a few years back and I really loved the area. I know there are a few private schools in the area but waiting lists are long and I don't think we could afford it! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
portlaunay Posted April 20, 2013 Report Share Posted April 20, 2013 Beware though, performance stats only tell part of the story, how the school 'feels' for your child, whether they run programmes that develop your child's natural skills and abilities or their teaching, bullying policies and the effectiveness of the P&C may also be of interest. The first school mine went to was highly regarded, had outstanding ratings and it was a dead cert for kids to move from it to the 'best' high school. They hated it. Actually, we hated it too. Fiercely academic, highly disciplined and little regard for the individual. One week I received a letter - posted, not handed to me. It was from my son's teacher telling me they'd booked an appointment to talk to me, no consultation, just a demand to see me. At the meeting his teacher expressed her 'disappointment at his lack of maturity'. He was 7 at the time. I thanked her and told her how reassuring it was to hear her say that. He never went back. There's a high school close to us with something of a reputation. It does not fare well in the league tables and folks around these parts screw their faces up when talking about it (no idea why I've suddenly started typing like I'm in a cowboy film). When you actually go there you find they have the most incredible music programme with a pro recording studio. They have an outstanding marine studies programme too and are really well resourced for those with a sporting interest. They focus their efforts in those areas and turn out brilliant students. The P&C are also really active and get involved in the local community. The bad rep is undeserved and largely due to the location and the TAFE up the road which can sometimes, wrongly, tarnish the high school due to teenagers being teenagers. It's a tough thing to decide but don't feel like you have to stay where you land. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StraighttothePoint Posted April 20, 2013 Report Share Posted April 20, 2013 Cornish meet up sounds like a plan:0) thanks for all the info. Sounds like I'm looking in the right areas! Would I be right in thinking that catchment high school for mindarie would be clarkson? And am I also right in thinking it doesn't have a great reputation?! My dad lived in mindarie a few years back and I really loved the area. I know there are a few private schools in the area but waiting lists are long and I don't think we could afford it! As I said on another thread schools here are what they are..... If you choose a suburb because that is what you want then you also choose the catchment area by default. If you on the otherhand you choose a suburb, based on a catchment area for a particular state school, then you may end up having to re-budget your finances to suit that need. Vicious circle. Suppose you possibly need to make an early decision, assuming you cannot finance both, and either have the school or suburb as your number one priority and then plan accordingly. As for Clarkson High School I am sure there are hundreds of well balanced kids that go there, that do well and go on to do well in life. Many of these kids will be family members of Brits who have emigrated here in the recent past and so as I say it is what it is. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StraighttothePoint Posted April 21, 2013 Report Share Posted April 21, 2013 Beware though, performance stats only tell part of the story, It's a tough thing to decide but don't feel like you have to stay where you land. I totally agree Porty however folk need to start somewhere and stats and related information re the school in the official sites is a good first stop. The problem with anything else is that is can become anecdotal. Nothing wrong with that I suppose but it can cloud the issue and add more worry to the process depending on the types of comments. (For example I am guessing you may only have found out all of the above re the schools you mention after being here? - Not sure but if true then how did you pick the first school your 7 year old end up at that one? Suburb choice, school after initial research choice or just by luck?) Once folk have narrowed down their choices on paper then they can start to dig deeper as you suggest. It then also allows folk to start to arrange temporory accommodation based on their pick(s). Then, as you rightly say, if they arrive and it all goes bell end for whatever reason in their current suburb they can move before they long term rent or buy. In fact they can move again if need be, depending on circumstance, because nothing should be set in stone. I am not trying to justify that my suggested process is correct by a long chalk , just that unless folk start somewhere they will just keep going round in circles. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
portlaunay Posted April 21, 2013 Report Share Posted April 21, 2013 Actually SttP, I think you're right, you gotta start somewhere. I wasn't trying to challenge your advice, just offer an additional layer, sorry if it didn't come across that way. I guess my concern is with the number of people who presume that moving schools repeatedly will be so damaging to their child's education that they become some kind of academic and social vegetable. There is mixed evidence about whether moving schools impacts negatively upon a child's development, Coleman 1988, is a good place to start if anyone's interested, but in a lot of the cases there are other factors to be considered; reasons for move, socio-economic circumstances of the family, behavioural issues etc. It appears that for some, getting the right school from day one is really important and I was trying to get across the fact that, if it's not right for your child, move. That second or third move might be disruptive but if they're not happy, and you'll know if they're not in just a few weeks (or you will if you listen to them). In answer to your questions, the first school was the closest to where we lived, nothing more. Bad luck I guess. Supposedly brilliant school but my son plays guitar (Frightened Rabbit are his favourite band), he draws maps, is introverted, daydreams, has a stunning imagination and wants to be a Peregrine Falcon when he grows up. He's an extraordinary inspiration and he was never going to fit into a school that has literacy and numeracy tests every week. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StraighttothePoint Posted April 21, 2013 Report Share Posted April 21, 2013 (edited) Actually SttP, I think you're right, you gotta start somewhere. I wasn't trying to challenge your advice, just offer an additional layer, sorry if it didn't come across that way. I guess my concern is with the number of people who presume that moving schools repeatedly will be so damaging to their child's education that they become some kind of academic and social vegetable.In answer to your questions, the first school was the closest to where we lived, nothing more. Bad luck I guess. Supposedly brilliant school but my son plays guitar (Frightened Rabbit are his favourite band), he draws maps, is introverted, daydreams, has a stunning imagination and wants to be a Peregrine Falcon when he grows up. Jeepers I think us lot need to meet up because think we are very close in thinking and.... Knew of course that you were not challenging and was just retorting to prompt more information. Information and comment of all sorts should add value to these threads because I think people are, in a lot of cases, in my humble opinion perhaps asking too many simplistic questions and I really do not know what they expect as answers so widening the debate can hopefully only be helpful to them. More Clement Freud than Freudian theory but hey ho..... Anway similar to you, when we arrived we went there is a house and oh look a school near it so that will do. No deep and meaningful thought, no deep analysis of the school, just a guess and gut feel on suburb location, house and school. All fine and worked out so cannot complain. If the school had been poor then we would have simply sorted out another plan of action. No biggie. Like your son mine does what his mind tells hims rather than worry about anything. He is now doing an honours year in writing with his disertation subject being how do average characters end up becoming comic book super heros!! Yep, sad but true Now as for Frightened Rabbit what a coincidence as both me, at my age which is a worry, and my son were into them since they started playing in their local village hall in Selkirk, Scotland away back in the early 2000's. They were very underground for a while but now seem to doing ok for themselves. The band named because of the singers chronic shyness - he is just like a wee Frightened Rabbit. Anyway sorry to blether folks and back to topic from now on - promise:biggrin: Edited April 21, 2013 by StraighttothePoint Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Pixie74 Posted April 24, 2013 Report Share Posted April 24, 2013 We'll come to the Cornish meet up please!! Moving from Truro to Perth middle of May, just finalising trip now. Crazy, hectic times glad to know lots of other people have the same questions - reassures me I'm not going totally mad! Good luck to you all and hope it goes well, will post any tips & advice we get too - already have several contacts including a few more Cornish mates who've been there 30 years so it can't be bad lol. Keep smiling!! Amanda & family Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
waynel Posted April 24, 2013 Report Share Posted April 24, 2013 and... moving from truro to perth 1st June! what a small world Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
linda@no9 Posted April 25, 2013 Report Share Posted April 25, 2013 Hi. When we first arrived we were in Hilary's. nice area, rental $750 per week! Hillarys primary? Wonderful. Older daughter 16(now 17) Duncraig senior high. No issues at all. Schooling is different here. Arrive towards end of school year your child's report may reflect this (our 8 year olds did) she's flying now however! areas? We are now in Madely. Love it. Rental $620 per week. 5 bed house, theatre room, study etc. triple garage. We were lucky as we got a relocation agent assigned to hubs job Friend is in wood vale- v happy there, with schools too. The further nor you go, the more you get for your money same as sor. Darch is pleasant, newer houses etc, but we do like the older subs too. I wouldn't go beyond Ocean Reef because its too far out of CBD but if budget wasn't an option? Whitfords Beach, Harbour Rise (hillarys) and Burns Beach. $600 is a good budget I feel Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kerry267 Posted April 25, 2013 Report Share Posted April 25, 2013 This is very helpful as we're looking at these areas, we come over in July. Can you tell me which school Darch and Madeley are in the catchment of? I'm hoping to be in the catchment for duncraig and if not, woodvale.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StraighttothePoint Posted April 25, 2013 Report Share Posted April 25, 2013 This is very helpful as we're looking at these areas, we come over in July. Can you tell me which school Darch and Madeley are in the catchment of? I'm hoping to be in the catchment for duncraig and if not, woodvale.. All the links for the information you hopefully need are on the first page of this post. http://www.det.wa.edu.au/schoolsonline/home.do Go here and just type in the suburb name and up pops the schools in that catchment. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lozzachino Posted April 25, 2013 Report Share Posted April 25, 2013 All the links for the information you hopefully need are on the first page of this post. http://www.det.wa.edu.au/schoolsonline/home.do Go here and just type in the suburb name and up pops the schools in that catchment. Have been looking for something like this for ages!!! Thank you!!!!! Arriving next week and getting so so so excited!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kerry267 Posted April 25, 2013 Report Share Posted April 25, 2013 All the links for the information you hopefully need are on the first page of this post. http://www.det.wa.edu.au/schoolsonline/home.do Go here and just type in the suburb name and up pops the schools in that catchment. Brilliant! Thank you, just what I need! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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